


Bonds of Family

by Rhi_rhi



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics), Under the Red Hood
Genre: Gen, actually it's all Jason centric, bat boys being brothers, batfamily, i'm a slow updater i'm sorry, jason can dance, mostly Jason centric, oops he's actually nice
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-05-31 14:35:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15121523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhi_rhi/pseuds/Rhi_rhi
Summary: Just one-shots of the Batfamily being a family.





	Bonds of Family

**Author's Note:**

> Jason and Dick.

Jason looked down and sighed. 

He was on patrol, in lower part of Crime Alley, where none of the other Bats ever were. It was his territory, and his alone. He knew every shady alley and every suspicious corner; he belonged there, and it was  _ his _ . That’s what made him a true Gotham boy, more so than any of the other Bats. He embraced even the lowest, dirtiest part of the city and called it his home. 

At the moment, however, none of that mattered. 

He was on top of a building that was next to the train tracks that separated lower Crime Alley from upper Crime Alley, where crime wasn’t  _ as  _ bad and the people were more likely to ignore you than pick a fight. It was beginning to drizzle, but he could still see well enough across the tracks to identify the figure loitering outside a convenience store. 

Dick Grayson. 

Not Nightwing. Just Dick Grayson. 

He was standing about a foot away from the wall, his face turned up to the sky. He was wearing a leather jacket, that Jason had never seen him in before, and his shoulders were slumped. Jason could only see half his face, but he looked… Sad. Normally, Jason would just let his brothers have their moods and move on like he didn’t see anything, but Dick Grayson wasn’t a ‘sad’ kind of person. He was the optimist, the one who forced others to see the bright side when they all got caught up in their misery. He had seen Dick cry before, of course. When they thought Bruce was dead, when Damian died, when Damian came back, when Jason revealed he was alive, at the end of ‘Marley and Me’. But this was a different kind of sad, one that Jason was all too familiar with. It was the same kind of sad defeated parents felt when they couldn't make ends meet, or when kids saw their parents fall back into bad habits. He saw it regularly in Crime Alley, but not in Dick Grayson. 

“I can’t believe I’m about to do this.” Jason muttered to himself. He walked back to the other side of the building, where he had a bag hidden under the rooftop ledge. He shoved his helmet and a couple of his more visible weapons in it, but he kept two knives and a gun on his body, just in case. Then he climbed down the fire escape, and made his way over the tracks towards Dick. He didn’t even notice Jason walking up to him, which said a lot about his mental state. 

“You look terrible.” Jason said in greeting. Dick jumped slightly, but smiled when he saw it was just Jason. 

“Right back atcha.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes, and his voice sounded thin and tired. 

“What are you doing down here?” 

“Oh.” Dick sighed and looked back up at the sky. “I needed to get out of the manor, and go somewhere…”

“Where you wouldn’t be recognized because you needed to brood?” Jason finished for him, his tone slightly teasing. “You know, I have a patent on wearing leather and being depressed in Crime Alley.” 

“That’s awfully specific.” Dick glanced at him again, but his eyes looked watery and his expression was even more strained. Jason sighed internally; his usual method wasn’t helping, so it looked like they would have to switch roles for a bit. 

“What’s on your mind?” He asked, forcing his voice to be soft and even. Dick didn’t seem to notice, but it worked, because he sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. 

“It’s just… Everyone expects everything from me, you know? ‘Dick, do this’, ‘Dick, do that’, ‘Dick, lead the Titans’, ‘Dick, take on this case’, ‘Don’t forget about your actual job’, ‘you have to make an appearance at this gala with me’, ‘control your brothers, set a good example, you’re the eldest’, and I feel like I’m being stretched too thin, too fast. Even if there were two of me, I still wouldn’t have enough time to get enough sleep.” 

Jason felt a pang of guilt. Dick had always taken on a lot, even when Jason had still been Robin, but that had just been with the Titans. Now Dick was working with the Titans and Bruce, and all the other Bats, and even sometimes the Justice League, plus he had a day job. Jason certainly hadn’t helped any when it came to their siblings; he tended to encourage Tim and Damian’s fights. 

“Listen, Dick.” Jason began, slowly. He wasn’t very good at comforting people; he had never really needed to, but now was as good a time as any. “How about some Vietnamese?” Was what came out instead. 

“What?”

“I know a great Vietnamese place a couple blocks from here. I used to know the owner back before Robin, and I stopped him from being roped into a gang war last year, so he never charges me. Half the street is a blind spot on the cameras, too. Come on.” Rolling with it, Jason shoved Dick in the right direction with his shoulder, and started walking. 

“Bold of you to presume I like Vietnamese.” Dick said, his voice a little lighter, and Jason snorted. 

“Who doesn’t like Vietnamese?”

“That’s fair.” 

They walked in silence to the restaurant, where the owner greated Jason with a hug, and did the same to Dick once they were introduced. The man didn’t seem to recognize Dick, or if he did, he didn’t show it. They got a booth in the far corner, and two noodle bowls. They talked and gossiped, about things unrelated to work, even about who Tim was going out with  _ now _ . Dick thought it might be Supergirl, but Jason was almost positive it was Superboy. For the designated nerd of their family, Tim sure got around. 

When they stumbled out of the restaurant, an hour and a half later, Dick was smiling again. He clapped Jason on the shoulder, and Jason realized that he was smiling too. 

“Thanks, Jason. I needed that.” Dick said sincerely. He glanced down at his watch, and swore softly. “We should get going. We gotta start patrol soon.” 

“No,  _ I  _ gotta start patrol soon. You go home. I’ll cover for you.” 

“What? No, Jay, I-”

“Look terrible and need to sleep for a week? Yeah, you do.” Jason snorted. “Just for tonight, okay? You got work in the morning, I don’t.” 

“Jay, are you sure?” 

“Yeah, yeah.” Jason waved a hand. “I told you, I have a patent on wearing leather and being moody.” 

“Why are you really doing this? Do you owe me something? Did you do something to my bike?” 

“What? No!” Jason felt a bit offended. “Can’t I just do something nice for my big brother?” 

“Jason.” Dick gave him a look. 

“It’s just…” Jason looked up at the sky and worked his jaw, thinking about what to say. Finally, he looked back down. “I know you would do the same for me.” Dicks face softened, and Jason saw what was coming before he even moved. Dick lunged forward and engulfed him in a hug. Jason stiffened on reflex; he had been sensitive about physical contact ever since the Joker. Steph once tried to hug him after one of their first missions together, and he had panicked and pulled a gun on her. But he had gotten a little better, and he forced himself to relax and hugged Dick back. It… It had been a while since he had hugged Dick. He could practically feel Dick’s smile on his shoulder. 

“Alright.” Jason pulled back, after a minute. “That’s enough touchy-feely for us. We are Bats, after all.” Dick laughed and nodded. 

“Of course.” He nodded. “Just for tonight, right?” 

“Obviously.” Jason rolled his eyes. “Can’t have you getting lazy on me, Dickie.” 

“I appreciate the sentiment. Thank you, Jason.” Dick said the last part with complete sincerity. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Jason waved his hand. “I’ll cover your route, but I won’t work on any of your cases.” 

“I wouldn’t expect you to.” Dick nodded. 

“Get some sleep.” Jason shoved him in the direction that would lead him out of Crime Alley. 

“Oh trust me, I will.” Dick laughed again, and waved. “See you later.”

“Yeah. See ya.” 

  
  



End file.
